Masterclasses
At FaithAction, we’re well aware of the issues and needs that are unique to faith-based organisations, having worked with organisations of all shapes and sizes across England, and we’ve also seen that most of the guidance and training fails to address them. Our workshops are designed to accommodate smaller faith-based and community organisations: the ones working hard with little resources; the ones that have people filling multiple roles; the ones making a difference to their area. What’s more, many of the skills we teach in these sessions are completely transferable – planning isn’t just for projects, and good communication isn’t just for presenting.
"Very practical and useful examples that are transferable to my own work and projects. This has shown me a framework of how to plan step-by-step."
"It showed me how effective planning can ease the burden of event management, leaving me equipped and prepared to enjoy the process!"
Each workshop is supported by a range of engaging activities, designed to help you put into practice ideas as you learn them, as well as encourage group discussion to further explore concepts. We’ve seen a great response to this approach in the past, and we’re keen to keep offering the same high-impact training at a low cost. What’s more, our training is designed to be all-inclusive – regardless of your previous experience or background, we’re sure you’ll be able to learn plenty of new things through us.
"I went from knowing nothing about event management to feeling ready to take on a project."
"Gave some excellent examples of how planning and structure can help manage you to manage a previously daunting task."
Workshops we offer
Fast Track to Funding
Are you new to grant funding and don’t know where to start? Have you applied for grants before but never won? Do you end up writing bids simply because no-one else can?We know well how frustrating it can be to spend hours and hours writing a bid for a grant, only to be rejected. At FaithAction, we’ve been involved in many successful grant bids in the past, but we’ve also run programmes that involve giving out grant funding ourselves. This unique position means we’ve seen grant funding through the eyes of both sides, and we’re well aware of what does and doesn’t belong in a successful grant application and the common mistakes made when writing bids.
The course is designed to help those who have never applied for a grant before as well as those who have not been successful. We’ll cover the types of funding out there and how to identify what works for your organisation, the preparation you’ll need to do before pen touches paper, and everything you should be considering in order to ensure your application has the best chance of success.
- The types of funding available
- Deciding which grant is right for you
- How to prepare before applying
- Writing a bid and common mistakes
- Budgets, timescales, and project plans
- Outcomes and outputs
Event Management
Holding an event something that a group of any size is likely to contend with at some point. Whether its a small and local for your community or a large and national with delegates from far afield, hosting an successful event requires managing many different things all at the same time. This training is designed to equip anybody with the basic administration skills needed to successfully plan and run an event – we’re not looking to turn everyone who attends into official full-time Events Managers.
You’ll have the opportunity to hear some advice and guidance from the FaithAction, and learn from the experiences of both the FaithAction team itself and our member organisations and groups. The course and exercises have been designed to make people consider all aspects of their events, particularly areas that might normally be overlooked.
- Planning and implementing
- Championing and responsibilities
- Identifying risks and issues
- Communication and marketing
- On the day management
- What comes after an event
Project Management
The team at FaithAction has had vast experience in managing projects, but it is often the case that the voluntary sector is accused of being poorly managed or unprofessional. However, with just some simple procedures in place, even small faith-based organisations can manage their programmes cleanly and efficiently, without lots of bureaucracy and red tape.This course covers exactly what a project is, what a project manager is both meant to do and not do, and the three phases that make up a project: the implementation, the delivery, and the closing.
Some of the principles covered are derived from the PRINCE2 methodology, but we have endeavoured to ensure the work is not too labour-intensive but that we cover the most worthwhile aspects of project management.
- The role of the project manager
- Roles and delegation
- Identifying risks and issues
- The stages of a project
- Planning, implementation and delivery
- Closing a project
Presentation and Facilitation
It’s likely that at some point, you’ve had to sit through an ill-prepared and badly-delivered presentation. We assume that because someone understands a topic, they are able to pass on this knowledge effectively. However, while someone may be an expert in their field, this does not mean that they are also an good communicator.
So, the aim of this course is to help you become a better communicator – not to make you a PowerPoint wizard. This involves what you should consider before creating your presentation and how to tailor it to your audience, how you can use presentation software like PowerPoint to enhance rather than diminish your presentation, and how to deliver effectively to your audience.
Getting feedback from your audience or involving them in a discussion is also a key skill for an effective communicator, and we’ll examine the best ways to get your audience involved while keeping everything organised and under control.
- Preparing a presentation
- Knowing your audience
- Effective use of presentation software
- Delivering to an audience
- Facilitating discussion and feedback
